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Gnomes
Lifespan Two hundred and fifty to three hundred years. Physical Description The gnomes stand around three and a half to four feet tall, with lighter features than dwarves and heavier features than halflings. Generations of subterranean living have left the gnomes pale-skinned and –eyed, although darker hair colours persist. They do not seem to have a subterranean origin as the dwarves do, as the sky may perturb them, but it doesn’t fill them with the unreasoning dread that dwarves experience. They are not very hairy, and the males typically only grow sideburns and goatees. Their hands are more delicate than a human’s, and their ears pointed in a manner reminiscent of the halflings. They have fairly bulbous noses and rosy cheeks, and rounded facial features. Their voices are higher than those of humans and dwarves, but not squeaky as they are stereotyped by sun-folk. Mental Description “Truth is hidden in all phenomena.” This is the axiom of gnomish thought and the basis of their civilisation. While the dwarves see the world as underwritten by fundamental law, the gnomes see it as underwritten by fundamental truth. The gnomes view the world with curiosity and wonder, and embrace scholastic and magical undertakings in order to better pursue truth. They do not have millenarian visions of truth for all peoples, but believe in strictly personal revelations. They were created by the Architects, the god-machines, to build machinery and explore the mystery of existence (as their myths go). Gnomish curiosity makes them uninterested in political intrigue, such stuff being dreadfully boring. Gnomes see humour as a mental panacea and their culture encourages it as a sign of wit and wisdom. The gnomish tendency towards japes and light-hearted mockery leads more serious races such as the elves to regard them as flippant and puerile. However, gnomes are quite capable of being serious if they must, and there are few things more intimidating than a full squadron of gnomish soldiers armed to the teeth. In battle, gnomes are typically known for keeping calm and manipulating the situation rather than going into a rage, and make superb tacticians. The gnomes are more often scientists than artists, but they appreciate art and music, and often even sing while doing routine mechanical repairs. Gnomes are not as bold as halflings, often sceptically noting that the flighty halflings seem to learn nothing from their misadventures. Alignment Gnomes favour an even balance between harmony and freedom, meaning their society regards the two as mutually incontrovertible and supportive. Gnomes as a whole, therefore, take a mostly neutral view on Law and Chaos. Gnomish society is somewhat more idealistic than that of humans, and though certainly not infallibly good, the Gefamuhili are more often Good than not. Relations The closest relationship gnomes have is with the dwarves. The stories of both peoples say that four thousand years ago, the dwarven king Syrgad’ Volzhstarje was approached by a group of gnomish artisans and scientists (or the closest equivalents in those ancient days) asking for shelter from a vicious human war above ground. The dwarf king stated he would welcome them only if they could prove their worth. To this end the gnomes designed and manufactured a simple system of weights and ropes which carried debris from dwarven dig sites, saving the dwarves the tiresome job of carrying such refuse themselves. Second, they designed new forms of arches and supports, allowing the dwarves to construct vast open spaces at the heart of the saighe without risk of structural collapse. Third, the gnomes used their magical arts to create a “living gate” for the saighe which would seal fast if armies approached. Syrgad’, overwhelmed by such genius, welcomed the gnomes to his saighe, and they have lived among the dwarves ever since. Though this is folklore, it illustrates the close interdependence of the two peoples. The dwarves and gnomes sometimes do not understand each other, with dwarves frustrated by relentless gnomish jesting and gnomes flummoxed by the unquestioning obedience of the dwarves to legal codes older than human civilisation. However, the interaction of gnomish brilliance and dwarven determination has made the saighes what they are today: subterranean jewels of a dual culture, beautiful and strong. With other races, the gnomes are more ambiguous. Two saighes in Hentölla and five in Kerlonna were put to the sword during the Great Orc-Wars, and gnomes often struggle to look past the brutal heritage of half-orcs. Mostly they attempt to be fair-minded, and the half-orcs return this with their gruff respect. Gnomes regard humans as a people of fire, short-lived and restless, and are often rather intimidated by the uncouth vitality which animates mankind. Often gnomes feel distinctly out of place in a human city, seeing a world where ambition and passion overwhelm all else. Gnomes and halflings are curious brethren, with a similar love for pranks and light-hearted joy, yet a steep divide in outlook. Gnomes are always searching for truth and understanding, while halflings are simply ignorant hedonists to a gnomish eye. In turn, the halflings shake their heads, laugh derisively, and make their way once more. Gnomes and elves have an odd relationship. The elves see gnomes as decent and wise people who have been saddeningly divorced from the natural order, and gnomes see elves as a paradox: a culture older and finer than any other, yet still technologically barbaric (and peculiarly incurious and reclusive). Outside of membership in the Guild, the two races almost never encounter each other, however, and perhaps this is a loss for the world: the most sophisticated philosophical texts in history came from gnomish ink and elven quills. Then again, the elves are not renowned for their sense of humour, and even the long-lived gnomes might find the pace of elvish life maddening after a while. Interactions between gnomes and half-elves outside of the Guild are exceedingly rare, and thus depend strongly on the nature of the individuals involved. Social Structure Gnomish society is neither as hierarchical as that of their brethren, the dwarves, nor as fluid as that of the half-races or elves, but occupies the mean. The society of the Gefamuhili is fundamentally noocratic, venerating intelligence as the highest virtue. Engineers and musicians, mathematicians and polyglots are the aristocracy of the gnomes. Early in life, children are pressured to strengthen and support the intellect, while the unintelligent are regimented and marginalised. The children attend fashep, intensive schools where the sciences and arts are taught at a nearly overwhelming pace. Competition and cooperation are evenly presented as options to succeed, but unethical means are fiercely discouraged. Students with considerable intellect but a contrary will often do mediocrely in the fashep, and later depart the saighes to seek their fortune in the sun lands. The gnomes have developed a clan structure over time (borrowed from the dwarves), and the clan is considered the essential support for gnomes of any age. The leaders of gnomish society are the intellectuals of each clan, who debate the best course of action for the community in a given situation. Perhaps surprisingly, the gnomish acceptance of change has made their society more conservative by making them acutely aware of what things are changing and how best to react to such change. The leaders generally consider the current system to be superior and are loath to adjust the two-thousand year old fasheps or the regimentation by intellect. Gnomes in the saighes are leery of adventurers of their race (the “sun-touched”), considering them to be misfits who are better off above ground and not returning to their birthplaces, to which they too often only bring trouble. Crime tends to be treated with demotion in the ranks, or (in severe cases) exile from the saighes (often meaning the gnome will be unwelcome at other saighes). Gnomes have monogamous marriages and are typically required to marry outside of their clan. Marriages for love are discouraged in favour of marriages that are economically and socially pragmatic. Culture Gnomish culture is, as would be expected from such a longevous race, fairly uniform, though not as remarkably so as the cultures of the dwarves or elves. History is preserved in literature mainly as prose epics which record clan and racial history. History of the peoples is kept in prose, while stories of individuals are musical (often like extended ballads). Poetry (which is based on assonance) is not regarded as a high art, and is mostly associated with quick-witted, sticky-fingered bards in the saighe taverns. Gnomes see beauty in an elegantly practical device, and the vast, lavish carvings and tapestries of the dwarves often mystify them. Gnomish food, though using the same subterranean ingredients as the dwarven, is far more exciting and, at times, frightening. Gnomish alchemical experiments have yielded thrice-fish (pickled, pulverised, and dried fish which become a flaky condiment or snack), black wine (from the sweet root-juice of barzhav shrubs), and the better-left unsaid centipede salad. Gnomish mores frown upon intoxication, so the alcoholic beverages they consume tend to be weak. Traditionally, the gnomes have maintained an ancient lunar calendar that began in the days before the gnomes joined the dwarves, and they use this calendar officially and for festivals. Unofficially, most gnomes prefer the dwarven Count of Years and calendar, based on season (observed in root growth) rather than the moons, though they otherwise do not follow the calendrical dwarven customs. Gnomish sports are typically foot races and a style of boxing they have cultivated. Location Stories from the city of Nevaiallan suggest that wild gnomish tribes roam the southwestern desert, the White Thirst, but in civilised lands, all gnomes dwell in the saighes. The gnomish district of a saighe is called a muhiltig, and is often a single excavated chamber of vast length, situated above the dymikh, where the dwarves dwell. The gnomes do not delve as deeply as the dwarves do, and sometimes even travel to the surface when they maintain the air tunnels between the muhiltig and the world above. The muhiltig itself seems rather similar to an above-ground city, but for the fact that enormous pillars of original rock hold the roof in place, and the lack of sunlight. Light within the saighe is maintained by gnomish wizards, who create lamps surrounded by thick glass and fill them with an arcane light that only needs renewing once every few months. At the centre of the muhiltig are the fashep, laboratories, and temple to the Architects that are at the heat of gnomish culture. The hubs of the water pipes and sewer systems are located near the entrance of the muhiltig, to be better managed by their builders. Religion Gnomish worship of the Architects predates their written history. The Architects are regarded as perfected, divine unions of flesh and machine, which originated upon the material plane and later ascended to an immaterial realm. The primary relationship between a gnome and his gods is that the gnome’s reverence and love gives joy to the deity, who repays him with inspiration and creativity. Clerics of the Architects mainly address them with adoration as creators, not respect for overlords. Gnomes do not believe that there is a soul, but rather, different aspects of consciousness, body, and thought which are “assembled” by the Architects. At death, these parts are judged by the Architects, and may be reassembled (and reborn), put to rest in the celestial realms of the Architects (for the truly virtuous), purified in a realm of intense heat and cold (for the truly wicked), or even altered and reshaped. The Architects are depicted as partly mechanical, partly gnomish idols: not as they truly appear, which is incomprehensible in the mortal realms, but as idealised, holy forms of their worshippers. Unlike the dwarves, who mummify their dead, the gnomes practice a highly ritualised cremation, the better to return the dead to the Architects. The bones of the dead are stored in clan vaults, structurally similar to but far less ornate than the tombs of the dwarves. Conversion from their native religion to another only happens with exiles, and they regard such conversions as sad, yet predictable. Language The gnomes, unsurprisingly, primarily speak Gnomish. Most actually cannot speak Dwarven, although a few that work often with their brethren pick up the language. Guild members learn Old Marnic, Ghiñêsraf (the elven language), and Teogenoi, and adventurers learn human dialects. Gnomish uses the standard Dwarven hieroglyphic system, meaning that although the gnomes and dwarves cannot speak to each other, they can write to each other, instead. Nearly all gnomes are literate, and the complexities of Dwarven script is usually one of the first skills they learn in the fashep. To outsiders, Gnomish has a smooth, merry sound, noticeable for its pitch accent. The gnomes regard the Vulgar Marnic-descended languages as ugly and consonantal, with a disturbingly violent vocabulary and the same tendency towards instability as other human languages. Gnomes are used to communicating in dim light, and while nuances of body language exist, much of their communication is based more on tone and word choice than body. The gnomes tend to speak less formally than the dwarves do, though there is a complex, unspoken etiquette governing address depending on intellectual rank. A few… eccentric individuals have attempted to pick up the Draconic language. It does not end well. Of course, some gnomes take up learning foreign languages for the sake of study, but they are highly unlikely to become adventurers. Classes Barbarians are unheard of among gnomes. Bards are often taught the prose and musical epics of their people, and delight in the mischief they can get involved in. They tend to play flutes in the saighes. Clerics are worshippers of the Architects (except for a few on the surface in Kerlonna, who follow Sahullam) and can easily be recognised by their shaven heads, which they paint for ceremonies with the mark of a particular deity. Clerics do not often leave the saighe, and those that become adventurers are often proselytists for the Architects. Druids are exceedingly rare, even more so than with surface dwellers. Fighters are the soldiers of their people, the sappers and infantry of the Gefamuhili. Paladins are devotees of the Architect Naggekrei, the lord of justice, oaths, and fealty, distinct from typical priests in their martial devotion to the will of their god. The gnomes call paladins “Naggekreipafi” and regard them with a certain awe. Rangers are nearly all exiles who only later became trained in tracking. Rogues are drawn from the criminals of the muhiltig, who abandon the intellectual society with no interest in them for the surface. Warlocks are despised by both the dwarves and gnomes, but some gnomish conjurers fall to the black temptations of the abyssal outsiders. Warlords (as adventurers) are former officers who, weary of the sedentary life of the saighe, left to command new forces of their own under the sun and sky. Wizards are by far the most common mages among the gnomes, and Guild training remains the most common manner by which gnomes leave the saighe. Wizards return to dwell in the saighe when reaching the status of disciple n the Guild, and in Kerlonna several saighes have their own guild halls, for the training of gnomish wizards in a familiar environment. The wizards among gnomes are most likely to become adventurers without abandoning the saighe. The wizards of gnomes are also likely the most cosmopolitan of their race, being polyglots with years of experience of dealing with humans, half-elves, and elves.